The field of the disclosure relates generally to safety devices for electrical enclosures, and, more specifically, to a shutter interlock device, system, and method to prevent manual access to voltage line terminals within an electrical enclosure.
Known electrical enclosures with switchgear equipment include a line or busbar portion and a load or circuit breaker portion. The busbar portion includes at least one busbar coupled to an electrical load through exposed voltage line terminals. Flow of current to connected loads is interruptible through at least one circuit breaker. Such known electrical enclosures also include shutters to close and prevent access to exposed voltage line terminals in the portions containing exposed busbars when circuit breakers are removed from electrical enclosures.
During operational and maintenance activities on at least some known electrical enclosures, shutters may be moved by hand, either intentionally or inadvertently. In such known electrical enclosures, manual manipulation of shutters is possible due to a lack of locking mechanisms on the shutter to prevent access to exposed voltage line terminals when circuit breakers are not installed. Further, in at least some known electrical enclosures, access to portions containing exposed busbars is possible during insertion of circuit breakers through unlocked shutters revealing exposed voltage line terminals prior to full insertion, i.e., “racking in,” of circuit breakers.